Arthur Horsfall

Arthur Horsfall was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1915. He received his education in both England and Canada, studying art at the Winnipeg School of Art under prominent Canadian artists L.L. Fitzgerald and Joe Plaskett. Horsfall's artistic education continued through night classes at the Forum Art Institute in Winnipeg with N. Bjelajac, as well as summer workshops under Kenneth Lochhead at St. Andrews By the Sea and Roy Kiyooka at the Banff School of Fine Arts.

Horsfall began his career as a commercial artist in Winnipeg, working for companies including Stovel Printing, Rapid Grip and Batten, Western Engraving, and the McConnel Eastman Advertising Agency. After thirty years in commercial art, he left in 1967 to dedicate himself full-time to painting. His commercial background significantly influenced his artistic style, particularly in his realistic depictions of buildings and Winnipeg street scenes, for which he became best known.

Throughout his career, Horsfall received several notable awards including the Seagram Award (1965), the Price Fine Arts Award, Montreal (1966), and the Hudson's Bay Company Centennial Award (1974). He received grants from both the Canadian Council and the Manitoba Arts Council, and shared his expertise by teaching at the Forum Art Institute and the University of Manitoba Extension Department. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, a founding member of the Art Directors Club of Winnipeg, and participated in the 1970s Subway Group of Artists in Winnipeg, later known as the Subway Galleries.

Arthur Horsfall died in October 1995 in Winnipeg, leaving behind his wife, Katherine, and a son, Brian. His work contributed significantly to the Canadian art scene, particularly in Manitoba.